Scroll down for reviews of Jumprope -- Suitcase And Umbrella; Appleseed -- Slipstream; David Quinton -- Bombs And Lullabies 1981-1988; Tommy Keene -- Showtime; Popland -- Action; Bob Dylan -- "Love And Theft"; The Damned -- Grave Disorder; Astropop 3 -- Eclipsing Binary Star; Ian Hunter -- Rant; Quasi -- Sword Of God; Elliot Murphy/Iain Matthews -- La Terre Commune; and The Strawberry Smell -- Odorama

Eclipso
Hero And Villain In One Man!

(Death Barney)

Charmer of a pop record from Eclipso, whose secret identity is Bruce Gordon (no word on whether he is related to Gotham City Police Commissioner James Gordon). Working with luminaries such as producer Earle Mankey and, on one track, Bad Religion's Brett Gurewitz, Gordon is able to transform a variety of approaches -- from the classic Yardbirds song structure in "Long After Long" to the appropriately military march beats of "This Means War" to a variety of appealing mid-tempo melodic pieces that constitute the bulk of the disc - into a coherent sound. Gordon is aided by his warm, friendly voice and superior arranging abilities. At times this disc has a vibe similar to some of the best American indie-pop records of the mid-'80s. deathbarney.com

Jumprope -- Suitcase And Umbrella (Planting Seeds): Sweet '60s soft-pop in the vein of Ivy and Swan Dive. This type of music doesn't go anywhere without a good vocalist, and Cindy (the main singer) and Ad are both fine singers -- Cindy is more technically adept, but Ad has a passionate edge not normally found in this genre. And they sound swell together. On songs such as "Where to Go" and "The Glamour Scene", the band finds a connection between '80s college rock jangle pop and their regular Swingin' London vibe. In fact, fans of early Everything But The Girl may also be interested in checking this hep little disc out. http://welcome.to/psr

Appleseed -- Slipstream (Oracle): Good five-song introduction from Australian quartet, produced by wunderkind Michael Carpenter. Appleseed could appeal to both fans of Radiohead and You Am I, as they definitely have a big rock sound (and a big rock vocalist in Tim Elder, who drips with attitude on the rockers, and sounds so smooth on the softer "Now & Zen"), but generally avoid coming off as pretentious or overblown with some basic rock and roll songwriting know how. Only on "Ignite" do they get a little overly dramatic, and this is mitigated by the inclusion of the bluesy horn driven romp "Goodbye Good Thing". www.appleseedmusic.com

David Quinton -- Bombs And Lullabies 1981-1988 (Bullseye): Quinton played in the final version of legendary punkers The Dead Boys and hooked up with Brian (The Damned) James and Dead Boy Stiv Bators in a pre-Lords Of The New Church project before waxing the solo effort that is the focus of this reissue. But rather than punk, this is quintessential early-'80s powerpop that deserved to compete for shelf space with the likes of The Records, Bram Tchiakovsky and 20/20. And for that matter, the late, great Bators, whose one solo disc was also rocking guitar pop. Quinton's tunes are melodic, but can't quite be lumped in with the skinny tie brigade. This is mainly because songs like "Bombs that Never Fall" have a guitar edge reminiscent of glam-era Roxy Music. A real shame this is the only Quinton around. Bullseyecanada.com.

Tommy Keene -- Showtime (self-released): Why Keene never made it big is a mystery to me - he had a broader appeal than his '80s powerpop colleagues - in addition to the requisite hooks and melodies, at which he excels, he had good looks, a distinct, reedy voice, and his songs had a more adult worldview, reflected both in a sometimes melancholy tone (as opposed to the usual winsome yearning) and a robust calling card guitar sound that showed influences beyond pop (check out his smoking cover of post-punk legends Mission of Burma's "Einstein's Day"). He was also an ace live performer. And still is, as evidenced by this platter, recorded during his 1998 and 2000 tours. This sounds overdub free, and provides a great career overview - Keene is one of the most consistent artists around, and has really never changed his approach, just subtly honed it to add more passion, wisdom, and resonance. Keene albums are either essential or very essential - since this is self-released and he presumably will actually get paid for what he sells, this falls in the latter category. Parasol.com

Popland -- Action (Zip): Singapore trio featuring Fufkin scribe Kevin Mathews. Mathews shows that he can walk the walk as well as he talks the talk, with strong vocals on this versatile pop-rock album. In fact, knowing Mathews' taste, I expected something more Beatley, but this shows off some melodic rock that rocks, contrasted with some mellow acoustic pop. For example, "Dumb Thing" sounds like Husker Du's Grant Hart taking a crack at a power pop tune. The centerpiece of the disc is a trilogy of tunes spread through the disc titled "Whatever…", "…Happened…", "…To You?", which are really tender and affecting. The reggae flavored tune "Meat From The Sky" is a really nice change of pace, particularly with its middle eight, which sounds like Gary Numan gone dub. Ziprecords.com; http://members.nbci.com/poplandnet.

Bob Dylan -- "Love And Theft" (Columbia): Dylan's touring band, which includes Augie (Sir Douglas Quintet/Texas Tornadoes) Myers and Charlie Sexton, is alternatively smooth, swinging, languid and gritty on this superb collection of true Americana. Rockabilly, electric blues, jazzy '40s style pop and even modern folk (on the beautiful closer "Sugar Baby") are all part of Dylan's mix. Having faced off with mortality on 1997's Time Out Of Mind, Dylan comes back as a drunken small town coot who dispenses equal doses of whimsy and wisdom, often impenetrable, but irresistible. One of his best records ever - Dylan's starting to make Elvis's '68 comeback look like a Gary Lewis and the Playboys reunion. Bobdylan.com

The Damned -- Grave Disorder (Nitro): The return of Captain Sensible to the band's lineup does nothing to quell the campy goth direction the band has pursued for over a decade. In fact he's a willing accomplice, writing many of the tunes that seem to combine the worst aspects of Hawkwind and The Sisters Of Mercy, with singer Dave Vanian coming off like a cross between Count Floyd and Bobby "Boris" Pickett. A couple of these numbers are alright, but they aren't clever enough to be funny and not sinister enough to be spooky. This is even sadder in light of the few straight ahead rock songs that show the band is still capable of equaling past glories. Officialdamned.com

Astropop 3 -- Eclipsing Binary Star (Planting Seeds): Low to mid-fi pop record that doesn't go in the Elephant Six direction that so many seem to heading these days, instead investigating influences that come from relatively recent British indie-pop. "Fall Back Down" sounds like the Trembling Blue Stars meet the Go-Betweens, while "Starscream" builds a nice head of steam that nestles between the early Cure and The Stone Roses. And "Agatha" is American shoegazer rock with its expansive guitar sound, dreamy melody and relaxed urgency. The band will hopefully graduate to more sophisticated production which these songs and talent clearly merit. http://welcome.to/psr

Ian Hunter -- Rant (Fuel 2000): The shaded one looks great on the cover, still quite the rock star. Better yet, he hasn't forgotten how to write and perform a passionate rock tune. The record has modern production tricks, but never takes the focus away from the basic blues-based song structures - there's nothing here that Hunter couldn't have done 20 years ago. Hunter's lyrics are sharp and his voice less Dylanish than before - at times, it's a rumbly growl. Contemporaries like Rod Stewart and Eric Clapton should look to this record for inspiration - or at least how to sound inspired.

Quasi -- Sword Of God (Touch And Go): Duo of Sam Coomes (Elliot Smith's collaborator in Heatmiser) and Janet Weiss (Sleater-Kinney's drummer) deviate just enough from the patented Quasi formula of sunny pop melodies from the Zombies/Turtles/Zumpano school, punctuated by Coomes' distinctive keyboard sounds, and downcast slacker vibe lyrics to make this both a suitable addition to a Quasi fan's collection and nice introduction for the uninitiated. The passionate and uncharacteristically meticulously arranged "Case of No Way Out", the hypnotic "It's Raining" and the snotty "Little Lord Faultneroy" (with it's near "Baby Elephant Walk" rhythm) rank with the band's best. The title cut surprises with its guitar driven energy, "From a Hole in the Ground" throws in some '60s blues rock before getting back to business, and the mournful "Nothing, Nowhere" (Weiss' sole lead vocal) evidence the band's success at stretching beyond their narrow confines.

Elliot Murphy/Iain Matthews -- La Terre Commune (Eminent): The title is French for 'common ground', which is an apt description of the collaboration between Murphy and former Fairport Conventioneer Matthews. These two folk rockers each modify their approach - Murphy subsumes his sometimes Lou Reed-ish edge, while Matthews jettisons the sweetness that characterized some of his solo work. Well done covers of Bob Dylan ("Blind Willie McTell") and Bruce Springsteen ("Sad Eyes") should give you an idea of the path these old pros take. Oddly enough, Murphy's voice has lost some of the Dylanish aspects it has taken on in the past. Murphy and Matthews still have it in the songwriting department, making for a timeless slice of folk-rock. Encore! Eminentrecords.com

The Strawberry Smell -- Odorama (Rainbow Quartz): French quartet overcomes their unfortunate choice of a moniker on a high quality psych-pop release that has a lot of the same influences as labelmates Rockfour, but with more of an emphasis on the softer side of things. The backbone of the disc is comprised of bouncy pop-rock numbers, with dazzling harmonies, prominent melodic bass lines, active drumming and big fat hooky choruses that fans of early Blur might find inviting. This is complimented by an array of trippy rocking sounds: "Friends of Da Teenage" (which would have been a great band name, by the way) creeps into haunting proggy territory, "Balthazar" has a cool Pretty Things S.F. Sorrow-era vibe, and vocalist Cyril Jean channels Keith Emerson with a wild organ solo on "Slave of Time". Another winner on Rainbow Quartz. Rainbowquartz.com

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